Tears of Betrayal
by MidnightxBluexBlack
Summary: Lloyd faces betrayal once again in his quest to save the two worlds of Sylvarant and Tethe'Alla. What's going through his mind as he faces the betrayal of another friend in the Tower of Salvation? Warning: Spoilers! Not shonenai.


DoE: Greetings and salutations. I am Demon of Evilness, and if you are reading this page, then you have discovered the fanficion that his my first step into the world of Tales of Symphonia...fiction. I am a seasoned TOS player, so don't underestimate my knowledge.

Anyway, I've been wanting to write this fic for awhile, and it's one of the longest things that I've written (it took five pages on Microsoft!). I tried to work on my description and stuff...Ah. WARNING: THIS IS A DEATH FIC! Now...

**Disclaimer: Demon of Evilness does not own Zelos Wilder, Lloyd Irving, or any of the other TOS Characters, or TOS itself...+an hour later+ Or the Material Blade. **

DoE+glares+ I know, I know, stupid. Must you ruin the dream?

_SPECIAL NOTE: A slight revision has been made to this fic. I would like to thank Kath, for pointing out this mistake to me. Also, thank you for the review._

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"Lloyd! This way!"

A young man spun around, his hand going to one of the two swords that hung at his belt. His brown eyes searched quickly for the one that had called out to him, and he spotted the blue haired half elf quickly. _'What's Yuan doing here?'_ He asked himself.

"Lloyd, let's go!" a blonde haired girl called to him, Colette.

Lloyd and his friend all followed Yuan down into a secret passage. Yuan turned to face them, looking them all up and down.

Lloyd wore a red combat suit that was covered in an impossible amount of buttons. He wore baggy blue pants that had to be held up by suspenders, and his brown hair was spiked up, as usual, though slightly wild, which was normal, seeing as they had just gotten out of a battle with a group of angels.

The girl called Colette, Sylvarant's Chosen, wore her white outfit and blue leggings, as ordered by the Sylvarant branch of the Church of Martel. Her long blonde hair was slightly messed up, but her clear blue eyes shone brighter than ever.

The young boy, a half-elf, Genis, wore a light blue outfit with odd designs. He carried his kendama with him, and he was watching Yuan carefully, his blue eyes suspicious of the older half elf.

Genis's older sister, also a half-elf, Raine wore that gaudy orange coat over a light blue, long sleeved shirt, and dark brown, baggy leggings. She seemed slightly out of breath, and her light blue hair had lost its bounce, but her crystal blue eyes showed that she was definitely ready for more action.

On the opposite side of Raine, was a tall man in shackles. This was Regal. He had long blue hair, and wore a grim look on his face, his pale blue eyes reflecting grief of a sin. His dark green pants were rather dusty, which was to be expected, since he fought with his legs.

Behind Regal stood a small girl, Presea. Her long, pink hair was done up in two rather large pigtails, and she wore a blank expression on her face. She wore a deep purple dress that ended at the knees, and her axe was drawn still. The weapon was almost her size, causing most to wonder how she could wield it.

Next to Presea, was that girl from Mizuho, Sheena. Her spell casting cards were still drawn. She wore a lavender fighting outfit from Mizuho, and black leggings. Her black hair was pulled up in a sloppy ponytail. Her brown eyes watched Yuan with contempt.

And finally, behind Sheena, was Tethe'alla's Chosen: Zelos. He had long, flaming red hair that went down to his mid-back. He wore a pair of white, baggy pants, and a black muscle shirt underneath a long, pink vest. He also wore long pink gloves that reached up above his elbows. He didn't seem to be too concerned about Yuan. In fact, the Chosen seemed to be distracted.

Yuan was still scrutinizing Lloyd's group when Lloyd cleared his throat.

"Why are you helping us?" he demanded, staring at Yuan, his gaze intense.

"Now that the truth about me is known to Yggdrasill, the only way left to save Martel is to work with you. Don't think that I want to be your friend or anything," the half-elf replied, his voice cold and biting.

Lloyd shrugged. "You have a negative attitude, you know that? Well, whatever. Thanks for helping us. Let's go everyone!"

Lloyd's group ran up and out of the secret passage with Lloyd at it's head. _'Finally, we're gonna put an end to this _

_Yggdrasill…Mithos…'he thought as he ran up the stairs. They emerged into the Tower of Salvation. _

Once they were inside, Zelos stepped forward.

"Leave this to me," he said with his usual air of confidence.

Sheena seemed to be surprised. "Leave it to you? What are you gonna do?" she demanded, taken aback by Zelos's sudden action.

Zelos just turned around and smiled. "I figured something like this might happen, so I prepared a little something the last time we were here." He walked forward a few more steps and looked back at Colette. "Colette, come here for a second."

Colette seem confused but smiled and complied saying: "Huh? Oh, okay!"

Lloyd watched Zelos curiously. _'What is he up to?'_ He questioned himself. He knew full well that Zelos had not prepared anything the last time. They had been with him the entire time.

As Colette got closer to Zelos, a magic circle appeared around her, freezing her where she stood. A portal appeared in the space behind them and three angels emerged from it, followed by Pronyma.

Pronyma wore a red bathing suit-like outfit, and elbow length black gloves. Knee-high, black boots adorned her feet, and circling her body was a golden ring that was covered in angelic markings. Her long, green hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail that was barely noticeable underneath the golden head-dress that she wore. She looked over at Zelos and smirked.

"Good work, Chosen. Now, bring her to me," she crooned, her voice carrying an air of command that surprised Lloyd.

'_Is she…telling Zelos what to do!' _

Zelos's face lit up in a grin. "Sure thing!" he replied enthusiastically. Colette was warped up to the top of the dais in front of Pronyma and the angels.

Genis stepped back, surprise and confusion written all over his young features. "Zelos!" he cried, his voice filled with dismay, and the sense of betrayal.

Sheena, however, stepped forward. "What the hell are you doing!" she demanded, clearly upset, her fists clenched in a tight ball.

Zelos frowned. "Oh, shut up. I'm just putting myself on the winning side. What you're trying to do is hopeless and meaningless. What's the big deal? Colette wanted to be a sacrifice, remember?" he exclaimed. He sounded different, very different compared to when he was just joking around. Zelos was serious.

Lloyd couldn't believe this was happening. Not his friend…Not Zelos! Zelos couldn't betray them! He wouldn't…! Yet, despite thinking this, the boy found himself glaring accusingly at the Chosen. "Zelos! You traitor!"

Zelos's frown turned into a sick kind of grin, almost as if it were forced. "It's so funny that you would say that. It's not like you trusted me in the first place," he answered. His voice didn't sound accusing. He was just stating a fact.

This is when Pronyma chose to speak up. "Betray you? How amusing," she mocked, smiling slightly, out of amusement. "Zelos was our spy from the very beginning. Isn't that right Zelos?"

"Is that true?" Lloyd asked, his voice quiet and hurt. _'This isn't happening. I'm just having a nightmare. Zelos isn't betraying us! He's just playing a joke; tricking Pronyma to make fun of Cruxis! It's a joke…'_

Colette seemed to be denying the information Pronyma was giving them as well. "It's not true, is it!" she exclaimed, her voice almost begging Zelos to admit to all of this being one bad joke. "Please say that she's lying…!"

"I side with the strongest," Zelos explained, crossing his arms across his chest "It was a simple matter of weighing the Renegades, Cruxis, and all of you," he finished, using a matter-of-fact tone.

"You were leaking information to the Renegades, too!" Sheena burst out, sounding extremely angry, her eyes however, told a different story, reflecting pain. There was no way Zelos would betray them, but…"I can't believe you! You were always a pervert, but I never doubted that you were a good person when it came down to it!"

Zelos's smile widened slightly. "Why thank you, my sweet, voluptuous hunny. But in the end, I choose this side, because Mithos promised to release me from my fate as a Chosen of Mana."

Regal seemed to be taken aback. "You hate being the Chosen so much that you would betray your friends?"

"Oh yeah I do!" the Chosen replied, the truth and conviction in his voice surprising Lloyd and the others. "It's because of that title that my life has been a total joke. I can't stand it. I can't wait for Seles to become the Chosen instead."

"…You're lying!" Lloyd exclaimed, unable to take it anymore. "I still trust you, you hear me! You're the one that told me I could trust you!" _'Please, Zelos, don't do this!' _

"What are you, stupid!" Zelos replied, chuckling just a bit. He looked over his shoulder at Pronyma. "Lady Pronyma, hurry and take Colette!"

Pronyma nodded. "I leave the rest to you," she said. The three angels closed in around Colette and Pronyma as they prepared to teleport into Derris Kharlan.

Colette looked to Lloyd, her expression desperate and scared, her blue eyes calling for help. They began to fade. "Lloyd…Lloyd! LLOYD!" They were gone, with no trace of them remaining.

Zelos watched them go, then grinned, satisfied. He took a step towards Lloyd and the others. "So…This is how it ends." It was a statement, not a question.

"…Why Zelos? You were our friend!" Lloyd seemed to be desperate now, seeking a way to avoid the fight that he knew, in the end, was inevitably going to occur. _'You were my friend! Why would you do this to me!'_

"Friend…huh?" Zelos started. "…I never did get you to trust me, though," he finished, sounding truly hurt.

Lloyd hung his head. "That was…" he trailed off. _'But I did trust you…'_

"Don't feel bad about it," the redhead advised. "I mean, I did deceive you, after all," he pointed out good naturedly.

"There's got to be some sort of explanation for all of this. This is just another joke, right?" Lloyd's eyes met with Zelos's begging and pleading with the Chosen. _'Please, say yes! Just say that this is all a joke! Please!' _

"…Haha, I don't know what to tell ya'. I'm just a weak, lazy bum. All I want is a fun, easy life. That's it. Nothing more, nothing less." He seemed really to mean this, even though his tone of voice was slightly sarcastic. He drew out his sword, and with a gust of wind, two wings appeared on his back, like flames.

Lloyd drew his twin swords reluctantly, and the others followed suit. Zelos make the first move, charging into a battle that he knew he couldn't win. The angel ran straight for Lloyd, feigning right before performing his 'Hell Pyre' technique. The young swordsman, however, guessed that this was coming and quickly countered it with Guardian.

Zelos ducked a group of fireballs, only to be hit from behind by Sheena's 'Mirage Seal.' He spun on his feet quickly.

"Double Demon Fang!" he shouted, spinning once again without even waiting to see if his attack hit. He leapt out of the way of Raine's 'Ray' technique, only to be hit in the stomach by Lloyd's 'Rising Falcon.'

"Please, Zelos! Can't we talk about this!" Lloyd begged as he dodged a thrust from Zelos's Ether Sword.

"The time for talking is over, Lloyd. You should have asked that a long time ago!" the Chosen yelled, his words stressed as he continued to slash at the teen. Lloyd jumped back and out of the way.

"Please Zelos! I don't want to hurt you!"

"Victory Light Spear!" Lloyd gasped in pain as he went flying, Zelos's blade digging into his flesh. It was now that Lloyd and the others fully realized that Zelos would not be swayed, whether he regretted his decision to betray them or not.

"We won't hold back," Lloyd stated grimly.

"Good," was the Chosen's reply.

The battle continued like this for quite some time, but eventually, the redheaded Chosen was taken down, finished by Lloyds 'Raining Tiger Blade.' Zelos collapsed, his strength draining quickly. Lloyd ran over to him, kneeling next to his limp body as the others gathered around him.

"Th…that was pretty good," the Chosen gasped. He was clearly in pain, and every word hurt, but he was smiling as he looked up at Lloyd.

"Zelos…" All Lloyd could do was look down at his friend, regret and intense sorrow reflecting in his eyes. _'I'm so sorry, Zelos…Don't die…' _

"It's okay," he croaked, his once clear blue eyes beginning to cloud over. "To tell you the truth, I was getting pretty tired of living anyway…" he added, grimacing a little.

"…Don't talk like that!" Lloyd pleaded. _'You're going to be okay, Zelos! You are NOT going to die!'_

"Oh yeah, about Colette…" It was clear that Zelos was loosing strength fast, but he seemed determined to, at least, say this. "She's below, in the hall of the Great Seed. Make sure you save her…"

"Wh…Why did you fight us!" Lloyd demanded, his voice cracking.

"Because…My life was a mistake. But…once I'm gone…Seles might…be happier and…they'll finally let her out of that abbey," the redhead chuckled a bit as he said this, but that only made the pain worse and he grimaced. He wouldn't last much longer.

"Don't tell me that's why you…!"

"Heheheh…Nah…That's just a bonus…" he truly seemed to mean this, and he smiled up at his friend. Another wave of pain crossed across his features. "…Make sure you destroy my Cruxis…Crys…tal…" His eyes closed, and all traces of pain left the Chosen's face, only to be replaced once again by that sad smile, and he was gone.

Lloyd clenched his fist, tears filling his eyes as he looked down into the face of his friend. _'Zelos…I'm so sorry…I'm so stupid. I never understood you at all. I wonder how much you were suffering? We spent all that time traveling together…Why couldn't I save you…?' _He stood up, looking at the others with a new sense of determination in his eyes. "Come on. Zelos has opened the way for us. He told us where Colette was…That was his show of trust…We can't let that go to waste."

They went through the portal to Derris Kharlan. Lloyd was the last one to go, but he paused before stepping onto the warp point. "I'll never forget you Zelos…The way you lived…Your friendship…I'll never forget; I can't forget! I'll always remember you…You'll always be…my dear friend…"

Lloyd stepped through the portal, wiping a single tear from his eyes….

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_SPECIAL NOTE: A slight revision has been made to this fic. It seems that I origionally included Colette in my battle sceen, but as Kath pointed out to me in her review, Colette is gone. So, thank you for finding that mistake, and for saving me from looking like even more of an idiot. +grins+ THANK YOU KATH!_

DoE+is slightly teary eyed+ Aw...I made myself sad...Please R&R and tell me what you think. Flame if you feel the need. I have hot dogs. Over and out.


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